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Good news for new grads – that time you spent on Minecraft and World of Warcraft may have actually been time well spent.

Unilever has digitised its recruitment process and 20 minutes of gaming is now part of the mix.

The changes aim to keep pace with the expectations of potential millennial employees – 60% of whom, according to research by PwC, see an employer’s “provision of state of the art technology” as important when considering a job.

"From the CV, to the candidate search, to the interview, we're using technology to create a truly interactive experience allowing us to get a more meaningful connection with applicants,” explains Chief HR Officer Leena Nair.

“We know that people increasingly live their lives online and our recruitment process must reflect that. This new process will be faster, simpler and more flexible allowing graduates to fit applying around their lives,” she adds.

So how does it all work?

There are four steps to be completed to have the chance of being one of the 800 young leaders Unilever employs from the 250,000 people who apply each year.

Step 1

First off, the need to create a CV is no longer necessary. Instead, interest is registered using an online form where candidates can fill in details using their LinkedIn profile. Simple.

There’s no waiting around for a response either – an SMS or email acknowledging receipt of details will be pinged across asap.

Step 2

Now comes the fun bit – link to 12 games to play that will take 20 minutes max.

While those of us brought up on the pure entertainment of Mario and Donkey Kong may raise an eyebrow at online games being part of the recruitment process, take note: the games have been created not only to engage and entertain a digitally savvy audience but also to assess the skills required to become a young leader in various parts of the business.

The level playing field provided by anonymous game play also reduces the potential for unconscious bias among the recruiting team.

The fact that candidates can play in their own time, in their own space, and complete the entire process in 20 minutes cuts back on time and costs too.

In fact, the whole process is more agile. Candidates receive gameplay feedback within 48 hours. And the time from first application to offer has been reduced to less than two weeks for all applicants and could be as short as one to two days – a market-leading time between application and offer is circa 60 days.

Step 3

The next stage sees candidates recording a video interview on their tablet or smartphone at a time that suits them.

Step 4

The final step of the process sees candidates invited to a Discovery Centre to work through real-life business challenges and see for themselves what it’s like to work day to day at Unilever.

In a connected world, it’s key to attract tech savvy talent who can respond quickly to markets that are changing faster than ever before.

We know that 80% want to receive feedback in real time and have frequent check-ins on progress – as a company we want to ensure this is in place from recruitment forward.

“It is hoped that this innovative approach will provide an experience and help us attract the best young talent to the business, helping us in our vision to grow the business,” Leena concludes.